


Bonds Unbroken - Really, They're Not!

by Noodle_Oodle



Series: Love Wins! [2]
Category: Chinese Actor RPF, 陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) RPF
Genre: Established Relationship, Fixing Relationships, Guilt, Happy Ending, Hint of marriage, Love, M/M, Misdirected Feelings, Yizhan AU - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-20
Updated: 2021-03-20
Packaged: 2021-03-29 01:07:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30148404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noodle_Oodle/pseuds/Noodle_Oodle
Summary: As they settle into their new life outside of the Chinese entertainment industry, Yibo and Xiao Zhan get a very much needed visit from a very special group of people.
Relationships: Wang Yi Bo & Xiao Zhan, Wang Yi Bo/Xiao Zhan, Wang Yi Bo/Xiao Zhan | Sean
Series: Love Wins! [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2218965
Comments: 11
Kudos: 94





	Bonds Unbroken - Really, They're Not!

**Author's Note:**

> Although I wanted to include it, I didn't think this scene had a place in Love Wins! Except When It Doesn't. While this scene has been alive and well in my head for a while now, I didn't think it would ever see the light of day. Its been beating at my skull though, so here we are. This takes place a short while after the couple leave Beijing. 
> 
> If you haven't read the parent fic, Love Wins! Except When It Doesn't, this wont make a lick of sense to you. Read that first and then come back. 
> 
> Here is the link:
> 
> https://archiveofourown.org/works/29685393/chapters/72994650

When the knock at the door sounded through their otherwise empty country house, Xiao Zhan looked up as Yibo darted inside from the back deck where he had been setting the table. It was a small house, really just big enough for the both of them, but they had purchased a table for the back deck that would accommodate their families if they wanted to visit. Visitors couldn’t actually stay at the house with Xiao Zhan and Yibo though, they didn’t have any spare bedrooms. All visitors that decided to stop by stayed at the inn in town. It worked well enough for everyone. 

The front door to their cottage opened up into the living room, which their open plan kitchen happened to open on to as well. So when Yibo paused at the door before yanking it open, he turned to Xiao Zhan and flashed him a nervous grin. 

Yibo had been equal parts excited about this visit, and equal parts anxious. Now that their visitors were finally here, Xiao Zhan wasn’t sure which emotion was winning more inside of Yibo. 

When they had left Beijing, and ultimately their lives behind, they had done it all so quickly and abruptly that they didn’t actually say goodbye to anyone. They did text all their loved ones their new address though and told them to come and visit when they had settled in. 

These visitors that were here right now? They were the first, other than their mothers who had both showed up and helped them set up their new, tiny home. 

Xiao Zhan flashed his boyfriend a sympathetic smile and nodded, indicating that Yibo should open the door. 

Yibo did. 

“Didi,” came the ever familiar voice. It came with less gusto than it usually did though, and Xiao Zhan knew that Wang Han must also be harboring some nerves about their reunion. 

Xiao Zhan put down the knife he had been holding in the kitchen and wiped his hands on his apron. He wanted to give Yibo a minute to reunite with his brothers, but he also wanted to go and greet them too. 

A chorus of greetings occurred as Yibo was pulled into an awkward group hug as Wang Han, Qian Feng and Da Zhangwei stepped into the threshold of their modest home. Xiao Zhan stepped out from the kitchen and joined the group. 

“Ah Xiao Zhan, it’s so good to see you. You look well,” said Wang Han as he pulled Xiao Zhan into a hug. 

Xiao Zhan patted him on the back and flashed a smile at him. He didn’t want these people - men who had been so instrumental in Yibo’s growth from adolescence to adulthood, men who had been so supportive when Yibo told them he was gay, men who protected their relationship to the best of their ability - to feel uncomfortable in their home, despite how their ending had come about. 

After all the greetings and hugs had been exchanged, an awkward silence descended upon them as Yibo nervously studied the floorboards under their feet. 

Xiao Zhan knew that Yibo didn’t hold Wang Han responsible for what happened to them during that day they went to Hunan for their exclusive interview, but Xiao Zhan also knew that on some irrational level, it still hurt Yibo’s soul. Xiao Zhan wanted nothing more for them all to clear the air this weekend, so the four men in front of him could go back to loving each other like the family unit they were. 

“We have wine,” said Xiao Zhan, attempting to break the mood. “And dumplings!”

“I’ll take a glass of wine,” replied Qian Feng.

“Yibo, darling, why don’t you take them to the deck? I’ll bring everything out, okay?”

Yibo just looked at Xiao Zhan and nodded quickly. He turned and motioned with his hand to the back deck and everyone followed as Yibo turned in that direction.

Their house was small enough that even from the kitchen, Xiao Zhan could hear their conversation. He took his time collecting the wine glasses and plating the dumplings so he could give them all a couple of minutes. 

“Yibo, didi, your house is lovely,” said Wang Han. 

It was, Xiao Zhan agreed. While it wasn’t the picture of luxury that they lived in back in Beijing, their mothers had really done a great job of helping them paint and clean it up so it was to their liking. Xiao Zhan and Mama Wang had designed the decor together and they bought their furniture online and had it delivered. It was small, yes, but it was definitely theirs, and both of their personalities could be seen positively everywhere. 

“It’s not like what we had back in Beijing,” murmured Yibo quietly. “But I guess nothing is,” he said.

“Mmm,” agreed Wang Han. 

“Yibo, is that a new motorcycle?” asked Zhangwei. 

Xiao Zhan looked up from his plating to see Yibo beaming at Zhangwei, nodding. 

“Yeah! I just got it last week. It's a dirt bike, so not what I’m used to riding, but it works for the area around here. It’s fun. I also got Zhan-ge a quad bike so he can come out with me if I want to go on rides and stuff. We’ve done that a few times. I like it,” said Yibo. 

Xiao Zhan smiled warmly at them. Zhangwei always seemed like a prankster on television, but Xiao Zhan knew how fiercely he loved Yibo and he knew that the motorcycle was about the best icebreaker for that situation possible. Xiao Zhan wanted to kiss the man. Yibo needed all the help he could get right now. Xiao Zhan hoped the wine helped his lover relax a bit.

Xiao Zhan loaded all the glasses and the wine onto a tray and carried them out to the table. 

“Yibo, can you go grab the dumplings for me?” asked Xiao Zhan as he reached the table.

Yibo nodded and got up from his seat. 

“Sure, Zhan-ge. Of course”. 

Xiao Zhan got to work pouring hefty glasses of wine for everyone at the table. By the time he got to pouring his own, the bottle was empty. It was fine, they had prepared for quite an evening and had plenty more where that came from. 

“Darling, bring another bottle of wine, too okay?” Xiao Zhan called out. 

Yibo appeared a moment later and placed the huge platter of dumplings in the middle of the table. Everyone reached for the platter with their chopsticks. 

“Where did you get these from, Xiao Zhan? We didn’t see any restaurants around here on the way in from the city?” asked Qian Feng. 

Xiao Zhan smiled at him politely. 

“I made them myself. Actually, I used the recipe that you gave me from the chef at your restaurant but I made some alterations and added a little Wang family secret that Yibo’s mom taught me,” explained Xiao Zhan. 

Qian Feng’s eyebrows shot up. 

“I gave you a recipe?” he asked, surprise colored his cheeks. 

Xiao Zhan nodded. “Actually it was many years ago, when Yibo first told you about our relationship. I think you gave it to me to sort of let me know that you were welcoming me into the fold. I saved it and I’ve made these dumplings many times. Then a couple of years ago, Mama Wang intervened and added a secret ingredient and well, here we are”. 

"God, these are _so_ good. Damn Xiao Zhan, Feng-ge should give you a job!" said Zhangwei through mouthfuls of food. 

“I don’t remember that,” mused Qian Feng. 

“Feng-ge,” said Yibo. “You were the first one of everyone here to give Xiao Zhan your WeChat. Once you realized I was dating him, you really wanted to know him better. It meant a lot at the time”. 

Xiao Zhan turned to Yibo and looked at him fondly. Yibo’s cheeks had turned a little pink at the memory. 

“It still does,” said Xiao Zhan, taking a big sip of his wine. 

“That was so long ago,” mused Zhangwei, swallowing down his mouthful. 

Xiao Zhan shrugged. “That doesn’t matter. Not to us, anyway. We knew when we realized that we loved each other that we were setting to climb an impossible hill to stay together so everything you did for us, all of you accepting Yibo, all of you accepting me, it meant a lot to both of us”. 

Wang Han turned his face so that he was entirely focused on Xiao Zhan and he turned his mouth down ever so slightly. He wasn’t frowning, that wasn't a good description for the expression Wang Han was wearing. But he was definitely sombre. 

“Xiao Zhan, we still accept you and we still love you both,” he said clearly. 

Xiao Zhan looked over at Yibo, who was now draining the last of the contents of his glass and was reaching for more wine. 

Xiao Zhan offered Wang Han a polite smile and nodded. 

“Well, _I_ know that, Han-ge,” replied Xiao Zhan. “But there might be someone else that you need to convince of that". 

********

Yibo took a huge swig of his wine. These guys hadn’t been here that long and the conversation had already turned serious. Yibo had hoped to be much drunker before that happened. He knew it was inevitable though - the talking. He knew there was no avoiding it, but did it have to happen so quickly?

When he placed his wine glass back down on the table and looked up, four pairs of eyes were on him. Xiao Zhan was looking at him almost apologetically, but the rest of them were looking at him with complete and utter surprise. 

“You think we don’t love you anymore?” asked Qian Feng. Everyone had put down their chopsticks.

Yibo cleared his throat and looked down at his hands. 

Is that what he thought? These feelings had been coursing through him since they left their old life behind, and regardless of what Xiao Zhan said to him about it, regardless of how _right_ Yibo knew Xiao Zhan was, he couldn’t shake this uneasiness. 

He sighed. He guessed they were doing this then. He took another sip of his wine before he said anything. 

“No, I mean yes, but no,” he spluttered. Yibo rolled his eyes at himself. He was still utterly shit at the talking thing. 

He looked to Xiao Zhan to help him out but Xiao Zhan just shrugged. No, he wasn’t going to help Yibo here. Yibo needed to do this for himself. 

“The situation I put Han-ge in, the trouble I brought to him. I would understand if … all your feelings had changed,” stammered Yibo. 

“What situation Yibo? You didn’t bring me any trouble,” said Wang Han, reaching out and patted Yibo’s hand. 

Yibo’s eyes shot up and met Wang Han’s. He saw nothing but love and patience there. Maybe a touch of concern. 

“The government, Han-ge. They interfered in your life, they manipulated you because of us, because if _me_. That would never have happened if it wasn’t for me,” explained Yibo in a small voice. 

Yibo felt Xiao Zhan’s hand curl around his knee and rest there. Yibo was grateful for the support. 

Everyone around them fell silent. 

“Oh _didi_ ,” exclaimed Wang Han sadly. “Yibo, that wasn’t your fault. It’s the _government_ , it's what they do. Besides, I’m the one that should be apologizing to you. Look at what happened to you on camera that day? I was facilitating that and I let it happen. The way you looked at me, the utter betrayal in your eyes. It cut my heart into pieces”. 

Yibo shook his head fiercely. 

“No, Han-ge. At the time, like right in that very moment during the interview I hadn’t figured out what was happening so yeah, I was hurt. But as soon as we got back stage and that General started talking I knew. You didn’t do that of your own free will. You were forced. You had no choice,” Yibo offered. 

“But I still owe you an apology. I told you parents when you joined our crew that I would protect you with my life, and that day, I didn’t,” said Wang Han dejectedly. 

Yibo looked only at Wang Han. He knew if he looked at Xiao Zhan, he was likely to burst into tears. And he knew looking at the other two was also completely out of the question if he wanted to hold his composure. 

Yibo shook his head again. “You didn’t have a choice. I don’t hold that against you. _I_ put you in that position. And looking back, I shouldn’t have. That’s my biggest regret throughout this whole thing. The impact that it had on all of you”. 

“Yibo, you didn’t have a choice either,” chimed in Zhangwei. 

Yibo heard Xiao Zhan clear his throat. Yibo had this conversation several times with Xiao Zhan as they exited Beijing and Xiao Zhan had always said the exact same words uttered by Zhangwei just now. Yibo had never been able to reconcile himself here though. 

So he just shook his head and looked at Zhangwei. 

“We didn’t think about the people around us when we decided to go public. It was selfish. We impacted a _lot_ of lives,” he said. 

Zhangwei pulled his eyebrows together. 

“So what? You should have lived your life in the closet forever? Yibo, that’s not a choice. Because of your ridiculous level of fame, you were completely screwed over throughout this whole process. The laws changed. You should have been able to get married to the love of your life and live like everyone else. Many have done it since,” said Zhangwei Firmly. 

Yibo’s gut churned on itself and he reached for his wine glass again. 

“I should have known that we wouldn't have the same journey as others. I wonder now if maybe on some subconscious level I always knew that we wouldn’t. I was just so desperate to call Xiao Zhan mine, to finally stand up and claim him after all these years of denying that part of my life”. 

Yibo stopped talking as a lump formed in his throat. 

Xiao Zhan pulled his hand from Yibo’s knee and found its way to the back of his neck. Xiao Zhan’s fingers scratched at the base of Yibo’s skull affectionately. He was here, and he loved him. Xiao Zhan was letting him know. Otherwise, he was silent. 

“It feels selfish,” said Yibo after a few moments. 

Qian Feng snorted. “It’s not selfish Yibo. What happened to us? That was nothing you hear me? _Nothing_ compared to the tribulations you - and everyone like you in this country - has had to deal with throughout our history".

Yibo knew that Feng-ge was talking now about the gay thing. 

"We were famous. _Very_ famous. We should have known that we wouldn't be afforded the same treatment as regular people. If the fans hadn't kicked up such a fuss, they wouldn't have attracted the attention of the government," groaned Yibo angrily. He was never going to let that go. He blamed the fans for everything about their situation. 

“Yibo, let me ask you this,” began Wang Han. “Do you regret your choice? Do you regret coming out? Are you happy?”

Yibo didn’t even need to think this answer through. 

“Actually,” he started, the confidence returning to his voice now. “Xiao Zhan and I are really happy here. It might seem strange to think that we could be, considering everything we left behind. But something we never really got to have in our previous life was the one thing we wanted the most. It just took leaving it all behind to realize it all”. 

Yibo looked at Xiao Zhan and smiled. 

Xiao Zhan leaned in and placed a quick kiss in Yibo’s cheek. 

“And what is that?” asked Zhangwei. 

Yibo smiled sadly at him. “Each other. We didn’t realize it until we left that life behind, but despite the fact that we loved each other and despite the fact that we were committed to each other, we didn’t really have each other. Not really. There was so much standing in our way. Now? Now there is just him, and me, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything,” declared Yibo. "I don't care how much money you put in front of me, I would never go back to that life". 

His three Day Day Up brothers beamed at Yibo happily. Yibo looked at Xiao Zhan and he thought maybe Xiao Zhan wanted to cry. 

“So what is this all about then?” prompted Wang Han, clearly sensing Yibo wasn’t finished yet. 

Yibo cleared his throat. “I don't regret coming out, I don’t regret leaving the entertainment industry. I can’t even tell you how good it feels to tell everyone and anyone who will listen that I love this man more than I love myself. But I deeply regret the impact that it had on you. And our staff. All of you were so loyal to us and we didn’t deserve it in the end”. 

“Yes, you did,” barked Qian Feng. “You _do_!

“People don’t do things like that for others out of obligation Yibo, especially not when the Chinese government is involved. They do it because they love them unconditionally. Just like us. _We_ love you unconditionally, do you hear me? If we had to go through all that over again, I would. I want you to know that,” said Wang Han firmly. 

“Fire and brimstone, Yibo. I’d walk through fire and brimstone for you okay? You’re my brother, for _life_. And we protect our own in this family,” said Zhangwei.

Although they didn't spill over, hot tears stung the back of Yibo's eyes. Relief spilled from his heart. He didn’t look at Xiao Zhan, because Xiao Zhan had said these words to him many times over the last few weeks. Yibo was sure that Xiao Zhan would be regarding him with nothing but loving smugness at this point in their conversation. But Yibo didn’t need to hear these words from Xiao Zhan. He needed to hear them from these three men sitting in front of him, and the fact that he just did? His heart was full and overflowing. 

He didn’t look at Xiao Zhan, but he did reach out and lace his fingers through his boyfriend’s. Xiao Zhan squeezed his hand in response. 

“Okay,” said Qian Feng, as he clapped his hands together and reached for more wine. 

“Now that we’ve cleared that up,” began the jovial man. “We have one more item of important business to clear up before the drinking and the shenanigans can really begin tonight”.

Yibo raised his eyebrows at his brother. 

Wang Han cleared his throat. “When is the wedding, Yibo?”

“And who is the best man?” asked Zhangwei and Qian Feng together. 

Both men looked at each other and erupted into a fit of giggles. Xiao Zhan joined them.

The tension in the air was finally broken. 

Yibo stole a glance at Xiao Zhan and smiled at him quickly. 

“Firstly,” said Yibo, holding up his finger. “Hopefully you will _both_ be my best men. I’ve suffered way too much to choose between you. And secondly, two months. We were planning on sending out the invitations on Monday”. 

“Two months,” said Wang Han breathlessly. “Goodness, I need to call your mothers. There is so much to plan!”

Everyone burst into laughter as Wang Han pushed his chair back and pulled his phone out from his back pocket. 

Yibo turned to look at Xiao Zhan, still laughing. Xiao Zhan looked back at Yibo with nothing but love and adoration. 

With all of this resolved, Yibo was happy. Yibo had never been happier in his life. 

All was right in his world once more. 

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on Twitter @NikkiIsUntamed


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